Matthew R. Silver

Latest Publications

Few people following the crowdfunding space have been able to ignore the recent meteoric rise of online direct lending, often called “peer-to-peer” (P2P) lending. What started out as a simple one-to-multiple consumer lending...more

On November 4, 2013, the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services, by a 57-0 vote, ordered H.R. 2274 to be reported for further consideration. The bill, named the “Small Business Mergers, Acquisitions,...more

In 2011, so-called “pay-to-play” prohibitions under the Investment Advisers Act Rule 206(4)-5 (the Rule) went into effect. A recent U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) exemptive order application addresses one...more

The Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act (JOBS Act) directed the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to eliminate the prohibition against general solicitation or general advertising in any offering of securities...more

Bitcoin, when used as a medium of exchange, rather than as an investment vehicle, shows users many potential benefits. Part of the appeal is that bitcoins cannot be created at will and the supply of bitcoin, while large...more

Bitcoin is a virtual currency without physical form or governmental authorization. It trades freely via electronic means. Although rare, bitcoin may also be transferred in person, by a laptop or tablet computer. Bitcoins come...more

Bitcoin is a virtual currency – it has no physical form in paper or metal and is not connected with any central bank or governmental authority. It is freely tradable via the internet or other electronic means. Transactions in...more

Holding that recess appointments authorized by the Recess Appointments Clause of the U.S. Constitution are limited to “intersession recesses” – “the period between sessions of the Senate when the Senate is by definition not...more

By now, most investment advisers registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) have either (a) filed a Form PF, (b) are preparing to file a Form PF, (c) have determined that, since they do not advise “private...more

On December 12, 2012, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia released its decision in Investment Company Institute v. U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, rebuffing the Investment Company Institute (ICI)’s...more